|
Undersea
Adventures: Explore Famous Shipwrecks and
Sinkings
 FIRST-EVER
MANNED SUBMERSIBLE DIVES TO BISMARCK
SEATTLE, WA:
She was Germany's most powerful battleship, so
feared that the British Navy put every available
warship to sea to intercept and sink her. Defeated
in a fiery battle in May of 1941, the Bismarck now
rests on the ocean floor a few hundred miles off
the coast of Ireland, unseen by human eyes for 60
years. Now, a handful of adventurers can dive to
the Bismarck with Zegrahm Expeditions and Deep
Ocean Expeditions, participating in the first-ever
manned submersible voyage to see the infamous
German warship.
Discovered
by Dr. Robert Ballard in 1989 via remote vehicle,
the Bismarck lies at a depth of approximately
15,000 feet. Upright in a field of undersea
volcanoes, she is surrounded by a debris field
littered with the machinery of war, including
massive gun turrets. Using the MIR I and II, the
same deep-diving submersibles utilized in Titanic
dives, Operation Bismarck participants will descend
into the cobalt depths of the North Atlantic to see
what is undisputedly the most famous battleship in
the world.
Slated for
June 2001, the journey to Bismarck begins in
Ireland, where passengers embark the MIRs' support
vessel, Akademik Keldysh, their home for the
duration of this 14-day program. From Cobh (near
Cork) Ireland, the Keldysh will travel
approximately 380 miles southwest to the wreck site
of the Bismarck. Here, the highly-trained crew will
prepare the deep-diving submersibles as a team of
lecturers and leaders brief participants on their
dive experience.
Expedition
members will participate in one dive, estimated to
last from 11-12 hours. According to film footage
obtained via remote vehicle, the Bismarck is
surprisingly intact and shows well the damage
wrought by the pounding of British shells. Part of
the stern section has broken away and the main gun
turrets are missing (gun turrets now reside in the
debris field). Many of the smaller guns, including
the anti-aircraft guns, are still in place.
Although the bridge area was largely blown away,
the remaining superstructure is intact, though
obviously damaged. Teak planks are still visible on
the deck.
Operation
Bismarck is only one of four exciting submersible
programs offered by Zegrahm in 2001. In July, the
deep-diving MIRs will descend 2.5 miles beneath the
Atlantic to Titanic, the most famous shipwreck in
the world. An 11-day program, Operation Titanic is
priced at $35,500 per person, and begins near St.
John's, Newfoundland. On previous dives,
participants have seen both the bow and stern
sections of the ship as well as the bridge, the
grand staircase, the giant propellers and the
surrounding debris field.
Those
interested in older wrecks can board the Remora
2000 submersible and view Ancient Shipwrecks of the
Mediterranean. Zegrahm will offer three seven-day
programs in September 2001, priced at $9,950 per
person. Participants will travel to Marseilles,
France, and dive to two separate shipwreck sites,
both dating from the Roman era. The Remora 2000, a
"mid-range" submersible used for more shallow dives
features a transparent, all-acrylic pressure hull
with 300-degree views, perfect for viewing the
ancient artifacts and astonishing sea life found in
this region.
Zegrahm also
offers a chance to join a history-making deep-dive
to the Real North Pole aboard the MIR submersibles.
Slated for August 2001, this 17-day program begins
in Oslo, Norway, where passengers board the nuclear
icebreaker Yamal and set sail for the top of the
world. Polar bear, walrus, icebergs and polar
history abound en route. At 90 degrees north, the
real adventure begins as participants descend
through 14,500 feet of Arctic waters to be the
first people on earth to touch down at the Real
North Pole.
OPERATION
BISMARCK AT-A-GLANCE
- 14-day
program departing from Cork, Ireland
- June 11 -
24, 2001
- First-ever
manned submersible dive to Bismarck (15,000 feet
below North Atlantic surface). One dive per
participant.
- Price per
person: US $37,500 (non-dive companion rates
available)
-
Participants travel aboard scientific support
vessel, Akademik Keldysh
- Lecturers
include the world's deep-sea experts
ZEGRAHM
EXPEDITIONS
Over 10 years of expert-led adventure cruises,
tours and submersibleexpeditions to the far corners
of the world (Antarctica, the Arctic, the South
Pacific, Asia, Africa, Titanic, Bismarck and
more).
CONTACT
INFORMATION: 192 Nickerson Street #200, Seattle, WA
98109 USA;
phone (206)
285-4000 or (800) 628-8747; fax (206) 285-5037;
e-mail zoe@zeco.com;
www.deepseavoyages.com
Adventure
travelers can explore a host of famous
shipwrecks with Zegrahm Deep Sea Voyages ... a
series of 8-day submersible expeditions to view the
H.M.S. Breadalbane, a 500-ton sailing ship that
sank in 1853. The Breadalbane sits upright and
beautifully preserved on the sea floor 350 feet
below the Arctic ice cap. Only four people - all
scientists - have ever seen the submerged
Breadalbane. Photographically stunning, the
Breadalbane hangs as if suspended in the Arctic's
gin-clear waters. Two of her masts
are still upright and beautiful orange coral has
attached to her wooden hull.
* Per person price for the
H.M.S. Breadalbane Under the Arctic Ice Expedition
is US $9,980 double occupancy. Multiple departure
dates are available. Zegrahm also offers Operation
Titanic, an undersea voyage to the most famous
shipwreck in the world, departing August 19 and 29,
2000. These 12-day expeditions cost US $35,500 per
person, which includes first-class meals and
private accommodations.
Operation Titanic
will use the high-tech, $25 million submersibles,
MIR I and II, the same deep-diving submersibles
used by James Cameron in his blockbuster movie,
Titanic.
Passengers will live aboard
the "mother ship" Akademik Keldysh, Russian
scientific research vessel. Upon boarding the
submersibles, passengers will descend at a rate of
100 feet per minute. Once the ocean floor is
reached, they'll spend approximately 5 hours
exploring the wreck site.
*Passengers can expect
remarkable views of Titanic's bow, as well as the
bridge, officers' quarters, propeller, staircases
and mile-long debris field. No salvaging will take
place.
Zegrahm Expeditions also offers a chance to explore
WWII shipwrecks found in the warm waters of the
South Pacific.
Zegrahm's Faces of
Melanesia expedition, October 13 - 30, 2000,
will visit Iron Bottom Sound, where large numbers
of Japanese and American wartime vessels lie
beneath the placid seas of the Solomon
Islands.
This itinerary also includes
a stop at Espiritu Santo Island, Vanuatu (formerly
known as the New Hebrides), home to the world's
largest accessible wreck dive, the USS President
Coolidge.
Scuba divers here will see
guns, helmets, gas masks and other military
trappings left helter-skelter aboard the wreck, now
colonized by colorful coral and darting tropical
fish. *Price for this South Sea adventure, which
includes stops in Papua New Guinea, the Solomon
Islands, and New Caledonia, begins at US $7,990 per
person.
Zegrahm's Islands of
Diversity expedition through the Philippines, April
2 - 19, 2000, features a stop at Subic Bay, home to
30 shipwrecks, including the scuttled USS New York
and the freighter El Capitan, both alive with
coral, sponges, and lionfish. Price begins at US
$7,990 per person.
Expeditions are LED BY
INDUSTRY EXPERTS, NOTED SCIENTISTS, LECTURERS and
HISTORIANS.
Seattle-based Zegrahm
Expeditions is a 10-year old adventure travel
company specializing in expert-led adventure
cruises, tours and submersible expeditions to
remote locations around the world.
For reservations, a
brochure, or further information, contact Zegrahm
Expeditions at 1414 Dexter Ave. N, Suite 327,
Seattle, WA 98109 USA. Phone: (206) 285-4000 or
(800) 628-8747. Fax: (206) 285-5037.
Access Zegrahm Expeditions
on the Internet at www.zeco.com or send
e-mail to zoe@zeco.com.
Also
Air Safaris.
Top
of page.
|
